Guan Dongtian

    Guan Dongtian, born in Wuhan as Guan Huai, is a first-level performer of Manchurian ethnicity. His father, Guan Zhengming, is a famous laosheng performer of the Wuhan Beijing Opera Troupe, and his mother, Li Qianghua, is a renowned Cheng-style Beijing opera performer. Guan Dongtian adored Beijing opera from a young age, showing much talent in his youth, and soon went on to study under his father’s wing. Guan’s singing style is highly influenced by his father, and shows some elements of other Beijing opera styles such as Yu and Yang. Guan has a rich and clear voice, and his performances are heartfelt and passionate, appealing to a wide audience and earning Guan the nickname “tenor of Beijing opera”.

    Guan Dongtian was enlisted by the Wuhan Beijing Opera Troupe in 1978. In 1981, he was awarded first prize by the Wuhan Young Performers Guild. In the same year, his father took him to perform in Shanghai, where together they performed traditional pieces such as Making Gold Bricks, The Horse with the Red Mane, The War of Taiping, and Silang Visits His Mother. Guan’s stylish stage presence and exceptional level of skill earned unanimous praise from audiences throughout Shanghai. In 1984 Guan was officially accepted into the Shanghai Beijing Opera Theater, after which he won the prestigious Red Flower Award in a joint performance held by several Shanghai troupes, marking the first peak in Guan’s artistic career. In Qianlong Visits the South, a piece created by members of the Shanghai Beijing Opera Theater, Guan played the titular role of the Qianlong Emperor, which further earned him fame. Afterwards he starred in the modern Beijing opera piece The Tale of Pan Yueqiao, which in 1988 was awarded the Outstanding New Beijing Opera Piece Award in a nation-wide competition, and won Guan himself the Outstanding Performer Award. Guan Dongtian also received the Best Performer Award in the 1987 National Young Beijing Opera Performers Television Competition, a win which also included praise from both experts in the field and audiences alike. In 1990, due to illness, Guan had no choice but to step away from the Beijing opera stage, and went to continue his career in Hong Kong. In 1999, Guan joined a team working on a piece called Zhenguan’s Great Event, and played a Tang Emperor Taizong which had both royal elegance and charm, and a witty and humorous side as well. For his performance Guan won the White Magnolia Award in 2000, as well as Outstanding Performance Awards at the Sixth Annual China Arts Festival, the Third Annual China Beijing Opera Arts Festival, and the Ninth Annual China Opera Festival. Later, Guan Dongtian continued to cooperate with Mr. Shang Changrong, starring in Honest Official Yu Chenglong as Prince Kang, which earned Guan the Outstanding Performance Award at the Fourth Annual China Beijing Opera Festival, as well as the grand prize at the Twelfth Annual Wenhua Performance Awards.